1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to sunshade devices and, more particularly, to a sunshade assembly specifically structured for removable attachment to outdoor furniture (e.g., lounge chairs), wherein the sunshade assembly is fully collapsible and further includes means for adjustably positioning the canopy relative to the furniture and the user, to thereby control the location of areas of shade and thus, the amount of sun protection.
2. Description of the Related Art
Most people enjoy relaxing at the beach, in their yard, or beside a swimming pool. In particular, vacationers at hotels and resorts spend a considerable amount of their leisure time sunbathing in lounge chairs while reading, socializing, watching their children swim, or just simply relaxing. Notwithstanding, people having varying degrees of tolerance to the sun's potentially harmful rays, and some individuals prefer to avoid direct sunlight altogether, even though they enjoy the outdoors. The threat of skin cancer and premature aging of the skin is particularly worrisome to a large percentage of the population. And because the face, neck and arms are exposed to the sun virtually every day, and certainly more frequently than other areas of the body, many sunbathers try to protect their facial skin while lying in the sun by placing a towel or washcloth over their face. While this helps to reduce sun exposure and potential skin damage (e.g., wrinkles, age spots, skin cancer), the use of a towel to cover areas of the body is generally awkward and many times uncomfortable. For instance, when covering the face, a person is unable to see, making it difficult to socialize or enjoy the surroundings. More importantly, covering one's face is particularly a problem for parents who need to be watching their children, especially if their children are swimming. Furthermore, it can be extremely uncomfortable to be covered with a towel in the higher temperatures normally experienced while sunbathing.
Over the years, various devices and assemblies have been developed for providing shade to sunbathers. Most notably, umbrellas are still widely used by beachgoers, homeowners, and commercial establishments such as restaurants, hotels and resorts, to provide protection and comfort from the sun's intense rays. Others have proposed various canopy and sunshade structures which mount to outdoor chairs. For example, many resorts provide lounge chairs with cabana style canopies that have a semi-dome configuration extending up from the back of the chair and surrounding the back rest and the sides, top and rear of the chair. While this type of structure can be somewhat effective in providing shade, many people find these style chairs to be confining, as they restrict visibility and impede one's ability to communicate and socialize with others around them. Moreover, cabana style canopies on lounge chair create poor ventilation, due to the enclosing structure which inhibits cross ventilation. Furthermore, canopy-style cabanas usually need to be permanently mounted to specific style chairs, and thus they are not readily adapted for retrofitting to a variety of lounge chair designs.
The various sunshade devices known in the art, including those discussed above, have further drawbacks and limitations which limits their effectiveness, particularly at commercial locations (e.g., hotels and resorts). Specifically, the various sunshade devices in the art, including umbrellas and cabana canopies, have limited adjustment ability for repositioning the sunshade device relative to the user and any attached furniture. This lack of adjustability makes it extremely difficult to control the location of areas of shade in order to protect select portions of one's body. More specifically, the sunshade devices in the related art fail to provide for a full range of adjustability from full body sun to full body shade (full body protection from the sun). Moreover, the sunshade devices presently being used in the art have structures which impede the ability to stack the attached furniture, such as lounge chairs. This is particularly a problem with resorts, wherein it is desirous to stack lounge chairs at the end of each day so that the surrounding pool area can be cleaned.
In view of the foregoing, there remains a definite need in the art for a fully collapsible sunshade assembly which removably attaches to an article of furniture (e.g., an outdoor lounge chair), and wherein the sunshade assembly can be fully collapsed, while attached to the furniture, without impeding stacking of the furniture. There is a further need for a sunshade assembly which provides a means for adjusting the canopy through a range of operable positions to selectively control locations of areas of shade, thereby offering a full range of sun protection, from full body sun to full body shade.